General Mills removing gluten-free label from Cheerios, claims no health risk

This June 16, 2011 file photo shows boxes of Cheerios in a store in Akron, N.Y. (AP / David Duprey)

TORONTO -- General Mills Canada says it's removing the gluten-free label from future Cheerios cereal boxes as it awaits consistent government testing protocols for products containing oats.

The company says Cheerios products on store shelves do meet the current government standard for being gluten-free and don't pose a health risk.

But concerns were raised last year by the Canadian Celiac Association, which advocates for people with a sensitivity to gluten.

It said in August 2016 that oats -- a naturally gluten-free grain -- can be in contact with gluten-containing grains, especially barley and wheat.

General Mills says each serving of Cheerios products in Canada is gluten-free, as defined by the regulatory standard of less than 20 parts per million of gluten.

But the company says the gluten-free label won't be on future Cheerios cereal boxes until Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency publish a consistent testing protocol for products containing oats.